


lights will guide you home (and ignite your bones)

by jorgelorenzo



Category: Formula 1 RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, M/M, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-21
Updated: 2018-12-21
Packaged: 2019-09-24 10:02:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,259
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17098517
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jorgelorenzo/pseuds/jorgelorenzo
Summary: His bracelet is glowing a bright white, the grey of this morning completely gone and Charles can’t seem to stop looking at it. How had he missed it? Sure, the bracelet itself was blocked by his sleeve, but the sensations you were supposed to experience couldn’t have been. Where were the tingling sensations he was supposed to feel? Where was the racing heart and –“Crap.” Charles moans, slumping against the counter. “Crap, crap, crap.”Pierre and Stoffel exchange a concerned look.“Who is it?” Stoffel asks gently, placing a hand on Charles’ shoulder.“I don’t know.” Charles says miserably. “He was a customer, I never got his name.”





	lights will guide you home (and ignite your bones)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [LittleRookie](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LittleRookie/gifts).



> to my dearest LittleRookie - firstly this has been an adventure writing this! I have never written any of these pairings before, but I have thoroughly enjoyed every second of it and I hope beyond hope that you enjoy this. You gave me a challenge and I hope that I meet your expectations and bring you a smile. I tried to put in as many pairings as you asked for/like and I apologise for my weird humor, but I hope that you can find some laughter in it and that you love the happy ending :D 
> 
> secondly, thank you to S & M (pun not intended there lol) for all your support, I love you both to the moon and back!
> 
> thirdly, none of this is real and i don't know anyone involved.

“I’m so tired.” Pierre whines, slumping face down on the counter of the coffee shop and probably breaking about a hundred health and safety violations as he does, and earning a glare from the customers at the front of the queue. It’s nearly Christmas and the shop has increased in customers as it’s gotten ever colder outside. “I spent half the night up doing that essay, I hate Hartley.”

Charles rolls his eyes at his friend, Stoffel being forced to go and serve the waiting customers. “You were talking the other day about how he’s the best professor at the university.”

“Yeah, well, times change.” Pierre says, voice muffled by the countertop. “You’re lucky, you’ve got Rosberg and he loves you, thinks you’re god’s gift to aeronautics or whatever it is.”

“Are you two going to do some work or not?” Stoffel hisses as he passes. “Fernando is coming in later, he’ll kill you both if he finds you slacking.”

Fernando wouldn’t, Charles knows this, because Stoffel has the Spaniard wrapped around his little finger, but the ever growing queue makes Charles jump into action. He loves working at _Alonso’s_ with his two best friends and the money certainly helps with university and Pierre’s love of dragging him out to various nightclubs, so being fired really isn’t an option.

Charles and Stoffel busy themselves with making drinks, while Pierre goes and pretends to clean up tables to avoid doing any work, the little shop getting warmer and warmer as the number of people increase, so by the end of his shift, Charles is sweating.

“Um, are you alright?” Charles turns to face the customer. Pierre is off chatting to some girls and Stoffel is being shown off by Fernando to some friends of his. The customer himself has Charles’ heart skip a beat, cliché as it sounds. His piercing blue eyes are almost grey in the light, his blonde hair tousled slightly, dotted with snow and there’s a small smile on his lips that has Charles flush.

“I, yes, sorry.” Charles splutters, wiping his sweaty palms on his apron. “How can I help you?”

The man grins. “Can I have a caramel latte to go, please?”

Charles busies himself with the drink, mentally scolding himself. He reminds himself of his soulmate bracelet and his promise to himself that he would never date until he found the one, even if everyone else did. Sure, Blondie was handsome and charming, but until the bracelet lit up, Charles had to keep his crushes to himself, however fleeting.

“There you go.” Charles places the drink down on the counter as Blondie hands over the money. “Be careful, it’s hot.”

Blondie smiles and the butterflies in Charles’ stomach flutter. 

“I will be, thank you.”

Blondie walks back out of the door with one last smile back at Charles and into the snow. Charles watches until he can’t see him anymore, and then decides to go and pull Pierre away from the girls before Fernando, who was starting to look over at them suspiciously, fired him.

It’s only later on when everyone else has left the shop that it happens. Pierre is sat on the counter drinking a cup of green tea, once again ignoring all the health and safety regulations, and Stoffel is counting up their money for the day. Charles rolls up his sleeves, his whole body feeling sweaty and uncomfortable and he _really_ can’t wait to get home and have a shower to wash the day away. He’s got an early lecture, and no matter how much Rosberg may or may not love him, Charles doesn’t think that he’ll forgive him easily for being late.

“Holy _shit_.”

Pierre drops his cup of tea, the cup smashing loudly on the floor and tea going everywhere. Stoffel, who had just spent the past half an hour cleaning the place, looks outraged, but Pierre’s eyes are zoned in on Charles, who blinks back at him in confusion.

“What?”

Pierre points at his arm, and Charles looks down at it, expecting to find a spider or something there. However, what he does find makes his stomach drop.

His bracelet is glowing a bright white, the grey of this morning completely gone and Charles can’t seem to stop looking at it. _How_ had he missed it? Sure, the bracelet itself was blocked by his sleeve, but the sensations you were supposed to experience couldn’t have been. Where were the tingling sensations he was supposed to feel? Where was the racing heart and –

“Crap.” Charles moans, slumping against the counter. “Crap, crap, crap.”

Pierre and Stoffel exchange a concerned look.

“Who is it?” Stoffel asks gently, placing a hand on Charles’ shoulder.

“I don’t know.” Charles says miserably. “He was a customer, I never got his name.”

Stoffel slides an arm around his shoulders as Pierre’s eyes widen. Charles cannot believe it, his one chance to find the person he is _destined_ to be with and he manages to mess it up. If only he had asked for Blondie’s name or even just paid attention to what he was feeling, he would have been leaving here tonight with a soul mate, not a slightly stale bagel and some leftover cookies.

“It’s okay,” Stoffel reassures him. “What did he look like?”

Charles shrugs. “Blonde hair, blue eyes. Really blue eyes. And he had a nice smile.”

Pierre rolls his eyes.

“Wow, big help.” Pierre says, handing him a left over brownie from his own pile. “Age?”

“I think he was a bit older than us, not by much, but he wasn’t a student I don’t think.” Charles says, leaning into Stoffel and biting into the brownie. The chocolate doesn’t even seem to taste that good and Charles pouts up at his friend. “This sucks so much.”

“It does.” Stoffel agrees. “I mean, the best you can hope for is that he comes back tomorrow. I’m sure he’ll have noticed the bracelet too and then he’ll come back. If not, I think they have a website where you can look, it does it locally too.”

“Why didn’t I notice, though?” Charles whines, finishing off his brownie. “I thought it was supposed to be obvious.”

“It’s all going to be fine.” Pierre pats Charles on the knee. “Look, let’s go home and you can sleep and tomorrow you’ll come back and Mr Nice Smile will be here waiting for you, okay?”

“Okay.”

Charles just hopes that that’s true.

+

Unfortunately, Pierre’s prediction doesn’t come true.

Charles waits the whole of his very busy shift, and has Stoffel promising to look out for Blondie on his own shift, but nothing comes to pass in. In fact, several days go by and Charles’ hopes get smaller and smaller as they do. He has a feeling that Blondie either hasn’t realised that Charles is his soulmate or isn’t interested. Charles isn’t sure which one is worse.

“I’m such an idiot.” He groans, trying to ignore the fact that Esteban and Lance are definitely giving each other heart eyes over their lunch while Charles buries his head in his hands. “Have you ever heard of anyone not noticing their bracelet go off before?”

“Sure.” Lance shrugs. “Why do you think the whole soulmate search site was set up? Why don’t you just go on there, if the guy is looking for you, that’ll be the first place he goes.”

“But he knows where I work.” Charles says, stabbing moodily at a potato in his stew. “Why wouldn’t he just come back there?”

“Maybe it’s not him?” Esteban suggests. “Are you sure it’s the blonde guy?”

Charles nods. “I felt it, the tingles and everything. I just didn’t realise at the time because we were so busy.”

Lance and Esteban give each other another fond look and Charles sort of wants to cry. He knows his friends are very lucky to have met so young and to have recognised their bond instantly, but at the minute it’s sort of making him feel like crap. He can’t help but to notice the pale pink glow that comes from both of their bracelets as their hands entwine.

“Can’t you two make out some other time?” He asks as Esteban leans in for a kiss. “You know, when I’m not having a crisis?”

 Esteban rolls his eyes, but contents himself with a simple peck for his boyfriend. “Happy?”

“No.” Charles sulks. “I’m never going to be happy again.”

“Sign up to the website.” Lance says firmly. “If he’s not on there, then we can try something else. I’ll speak to my dad.”

“Okay.” Charles agrees, resigned to the fact that if he doesn’t find Blondie on the website, then he’s pretty much screwed. “I’ll give it a go.”

“Great!” Esteban beams. “Now, let me make out with my boyfriend in peace, please?”

+

That night, Charles does indeed log onto SoulmateSearch.com, albeit his hopes aren’t high. He searches Monaco and his gender and his heart does a little jump when three results come back. He quickly scours through them;

_Looking for a black haired man, possibly twenties or early thirties_ –

Charles moves ahead, his heart sinking a little as he does. That was the newest listing and the other two are possibly too old to be his situation.

_Looking for a brown haired, possibly blue eyed man, early twenties –_

Charles hastily scrolls down.

_Met in a supermarket by the frozen pizzas (I was buying five and you laughed because you were buying six)._

Dammit.

He scrolls down to the last one, and is unsurprised to find once again that it’s not for him.

_Looking for a brown haired, brown eyed man, mid thirties-_

 Great, just _great_. Charles cannot believe his luck, waiting all these years for a soulmate, not going on dates, not having his first kiss, and now he’s got one and they aren’t looking for him.

Charles texts George to tell him he won’t be in their lecture tomorrow and orders himself a takeaway. He figures might as well have a night of self pity before getting himself back on his feet. And after all, if pizza could bring soulmates together, it could certainly fix his broken heart.

+

The text from Pierre comes in the middle of one of his lectures a couple weeks later.

_Get your scrawny ass over here ASAP!!!!!!!!I HAVE FOUND BLONDIE!!!_

Charles drops his pen in surprise, the noise loud in the quiet of the lecture hall. Professor Rosberg raises an eyebrow at him and Charles has to think fast.

“Um, professor, please may I be excused?” He asks, putting on his best puppy dog eyes. “House emergency?”

Professor Rosberg clearly doesn’t buy his excuse, but nods nonetheless and lets him practically run out of the lecture. His heart is absolutely racing as he charges out of the campus and down the street towards where the coffee shop is situated, just on the outskirts of the university. He nearly trips over about five different times, ignoring the startled looks given to him by students as he dashes past them. Charles doesn’t care; he’s about to see his soulmate again.

As Charles bursts through of the coffee shop, he’s completely out of breath, and has to pause for a few seconds to catch it again before he takes in his surroundings. A few shocked looking customers are staring at him, but his eyes are drawn to the counter where Pierre is standing, arguing with a tattooed man who is tied to the tray rack with Pierre’s apron. Stoffel gives him a thumbs up from the counter, but Charles’ heart has already sunk.

“Um, Pierre,” Charles says quietly as he approaches his friend. However, Pierre and the blonde man are now deep in dispute, and his voice gets lost in their bickering.

“Look, you’re blonde with blue eyes and you never know, it could be you-”

“So are millions of people, you fucking idiot, that doesn’t mean I’m the person you’re looking for! I’m literally here to meet my boyfriend, not to be tied to a fucking counter.”

“Just because you’ve got a boyfriend doesn’t mean that you’re not the one. Charles said that he had blonde hair, blue eyes and, well, I suppose you’ve got a nice enough smile if you bothered to show it-”

“Pierre!” Charles hisses, Pierre turning to him now. “That’s not him, what the hell are you doing?”

“Oh.” Pierre says, grimacing as he turns back to the rather angry looking man. “My bad.”

“Damn right your bad.” The man snaps. “Now untie me before I decide to kick your ass.”

Pierre rather reluctantly unties the other man and then runs off behind the counter to hide behind Stoffel, who is almost doubled over with laughter. Charles sighs, turning back to the other man, who is glaring over at Pierre with intense dislike.

“I am so, _so_ sorry.” Charles says desperately. “I didn’t know he was going to do that, it’s just, my soulmate bracelet has gone off and I don’t know who it is and I’ve been making everyone keep an eye out for him and-”

“Alright, alright.” The man waves his hand. “Calm down, christ.”

Before Charles can say anything else, they’re interrupted again.

“Kevin?”

Another blonde man, this time rather taller, his spiked up hair darker, and with a strong jaw, approaches them with a concerned expression on his face. Charles can see the glowing bracelet on his wrist, the colour a bright yellow and looks back at the Kevin to find a matching band on his arm.

“What’s going on?” The man asks, looking suspiciously between him and Charles. “Everything okay?”

Kevin looks back at Charles for a second before turning back to who must be his boyfriend.

“He spilt my drink by accident.” Kevin lies, shrugging. “Nothing to worry about, Nico, just discussing a refill.”

“How about two drinks?” Charles asks, beyond grateful. “On the house. Whatever you want, and maybe something to eat?”

Charles makes Pierre bring Kevin and Nico their order, feeling a sense of satisfaction as he watches his friend almost cower in fear as he places the food and drinks on the table.

“I take it that it isn’t him?” Stoffel asks quietly.

Charles shakes his head. “No. It isn’t him. My blondie doesn’t have a beard or any tattoos, or at least I didn’t see any. And he had a different accent, I don’t know where from though.”

Charles just wishes he did know who it is, and there’s an ever growing feeling that he might now.

“Oh, fuck.”

Charles and Stoffel turn in time to watch as Pierre manages to spill an entire iced frappe onto Kevin’s lap. Stoffel just sighs and walks over to rescue Pierre from being murdered by a furious looking Kevin as Charles laughs.

+

“Do you think I’ll ever find him?”

Charles and George are sat in the university library, the pair of them having to make a presentation on aerodynamics together, George doing most of the work while Charles sulks.

“I think so.” George says optimistically. “I mean, if not then I’m sure you’ll find someone. Plenty of people spend their whole lives with someone who isn’t their soulmate, it’s not the end of the world if you don’t meet yours again.”

“But I want him.” Charles says, flicking through a textbook that he’s barely taking in. He hopes Professor Rosberg is sympathetic with their questions in the morning. It’s only a week before term ends, so Charles hopes that their lectures will be more laid back, because his head really hasn’t been in it of late. “That’s how it’s supposed to go, and that’s how I want it to be.”

George sighs. “I know you do. Maybe after Christmas, you’ll come back and he’ll be looking for you then. He might not even realise that it is you, but if you just sit around moping about it, nothing is going to get done. Put up an advert on that site you were talking about and wait and see.”

Charles contemplates this for a moment before sitting up straighter in his chair. “Yeah, maybe I will.”

George clicks off of their presentation and brings up google and then goes onto SoulmateSearch.com before turning the laptop round to face Charles.

“Put one up now.” He says firmly. “And then stop sulking and help me with our presentation. You know more about this than I do and if we get this done early enough, we might still make it to Pierre’s F1 night or whatever it is he’s doing. Deal?”

Charles takes a deep breath before clicking on the _post advert_ link.

“Deal.”

+

It’s two days before the Christmas break, and Charles finds himself alone in the coffee shop. Stoffel has already gone back to Belgium, Pierre is in a lecture and _Alonso’s_ is almost empty with most of the students already having gone home. He’s heard nothing back from his advert, but he’s determined to remain positive, hoping the new year will bring him his soulmate at last. Charles hums along to Mariah Carey as he cleans the counter top, only three customers sat together over steaming mugs of tea. He doesn’t look up as the bell above the door rings, only when the customer is right in front of the counter.

“Alright, mate?” The man says in a strong Australian accent. His dark, curly hair is littered with flecks of snow. “Can I have an vanilla milkshake and a black coffee please? Oh, and a couple of donuts, cheers.”

“Of course.”

Charles busies himself with making the coffee, putting an extra scoop of ice cream in the milkshake just because, before turning back to the Australian. He places the drinks carefully on the counter before bending down to get plates for the donuts from under the counter. He hears another, almost familiar voice as he reaches for the plates.

“Sorry I’m late, Dan, the traffic was terrible with all this snow.”

Charles comes back up and finds himself face to face with a pair of piercing blue eyes.

“Oh my god.”

He drops both plates, the sound of them smashing loud in the empty shop as every head whips around, but Charles doesn’t care, because it’s _him_.

“You!” Blondie exclaims, mouth dropping open in shock. “I came back, but you weren’t here and-”

Charles can’t wait any longer, almost throwing himself over the counter and kissing Blondie firmly on the mouth. As he does, the milkshake topples and spills all over Blondie’s friend, who lets out a rather girly scream.

“Um, hello?” He asks, Charles trying to block out his voice as Blondie curves a hand around his neck. “Could you stop sucking face and help to clean me up? Earth to Marcus?”

Blondie- _Marcus-_ pulls away with a groan. “What?”

“As lovely as this soulmate bonding moment is,” Dan says, grinning brightly. “This milkshake is freezing and I can feel my balls beginning to crawl back up inside my body, so could I please have a napkin and some help?”

Marcus looks mortified as he turns back to Charles. “Please ignore him, he doesn’t have a filter.”

Charles, however, is laughing so hard that he can feel tears pooling in the corners of his eyes. He has to clutch the counter for support, feeling lighter than he has in weeks, the negativity that’s been weighing him down totally lifted now.

“I’ll get you a napkin and another milkshake.” Charles manages to choke out through his laughter. “Go and sit down.”

The other customers filter out after the rather public display, giving Charles a concerned look, but Charles doesn’t care in the slightest. He can see the faint white glow of Marcus’ bracelet that matches his own, his heart fluttering as Marcus smiles softly over at him.

“A new milkshake.” Charles says, placing it down on the table. “To go.”

He says the last bit a little pointedly, but Dan doesn’t seem to care, winking up at him with his grin still in place. Charles wonders if he ever stops smiling; it seems to be permanently affixed to his face.

“Don’t worry, kiddos.” Dan picks up the drink and puts the ring donut around his pinky finger. “I’ll be off then. Maybe you should close up shop, unless you fancy giving another load of customers an eyeful?”

Charles puts the closed sign on the door as he waves to Dan, turning back to Marcus, who has stood up now. He’s taller than Charles, and slightly broader, but his smile is the same as Charles remembers. Charles walks back over, unsure now. Kissing Marcus earlier seemed so natural, but now that it’s just them, he doesn’t know where he stands. After all, they don’t even know one another really, with only fate pulling them together.

“I was hoping we could talk?” Marcus says, reaching out and taking Charles’ hand in his own. “Maybe we can go for a walk around the campus and get to know one another better?”

Charles squeezes his hand. “I would like that.”

They walk for hours, and even though it’s cold in the snow, Charles doesn’t feel cold at all with Marcus’ hand in his own.

“I tried to search for you.” Charles tells him. “I put up an advert a couple of days ago online.”

Marcus sighs. “I kept looking, but when I came back to the shop the next day, you weren’t there. I tried a couple more times, but you must have been on a different shift, so I assumed maybe you had quit. I went online a couple times, but I gave up when I couldn’t find you. I thought I was never going to find you.”

“We found each other in the end.” Charles reminds him and Marcus beams. “I would never have given up on you, you’re my soulmate.”

“Me neither.”

He learns all about Marcus, his work in sports sponsorship, about his family back in Sweden and his younger brother’s dreams of being a racing driver.

In turn, Charles tells him about his degree, his friends and his family. He has to pause when it comes to talking about his father, trying to swallow down the lump in his throat. He’s doesn’t talk about his father or Jules all that often with people he doesn’t know very well, but he feels like he can trust Marcus intrinsically. Maybe it’s the fact it’s his soulmate, maybe it’s just the way Marcus looks at him like he’s the most interesting person in the world, Charles doesn’t know, but he feels safe with him.

“It’s okay.” Marcus says softly, leaning over to press a kiss to his cheek. “You don’t have to talk about anything you don’t want to. We can take it one step at a time.”

Charles leans his head on Marcus’ shoulder. “Thank you. I’ll tell you everything one day, I promise.”

He feels Marcus press a kiss to his hair. “We have the rest of our lives, don’t worry about it. When you’re ready, you let me know and I’ll listen.”

It’s overwhelming, the emotions he’s feeling, but Charles doesn’t voice it, just snuggles in closer as they walk back towards the entrance to the campus.

When they arrive back at the start of their walk, Charles looks up at Marcus through his eyelashes. The Swede’s nose has gone a bit pink and Charles can’t resist the urge to lean in and press a kiss to the tip of it. Marcus wrinkles his nose adorably and beams down at Charles.

“I was thinking,” He says, looking shy all of a sudden. “Would you like to come back to mine? I can cook us some dinner and we could watch a film. Only if you want to, I mean, I know we’ve only just met really, you don’t have to, I can drop you home -”

Charles kisses him. “I would love to.”

+

When Charles wakes up in the morning, he has to take a moment to remember where he is as he looks around at the unfamiliar apartment.  Then, he finds himself wrapped in a strong pair of arms, and he snuggles back into the warmth from Marcus’ body. There’s an annoying buzzing sound coming from the floor of the bedroom and it takes him a second to realise that it’s actually his phone. He leans down to pick it up, having to extract himself from his boyfriends hold to do so.

_DID YOU FIND HIM??? TEXT ME BACK CHARLES LECLERC!!!!_

There are about twenty various texts, all saying the same thing, from Pierre, and a couple from Stoffel which largely consist of thumbs up emojis. Charles sends them both a picture of the selfie of him and Marcus on their walk yesterday along with a simple heart emoji. He knows that they’ll get the message without words.

“Morning.” Marcus’ voice is slightly croaky and Charles turns to find the other man staring back at him. “Back to sleep for another couple hours? I don’t have work today.”

Charles presses a kiss to his cheek. “Back to sleep it is.”

He curls up against Marcus’ chest, listening to the sound of his heartbeat. The last thing Charles’ sees before he closes his eyes is the faint glow from his bracelet, a reminder of how this was destined for them. And with Marcus’ arms around him, Charles’ can’t help but to agree with fate; that, even if it took a little while to sort itself out, it was all meant to be.

 

_end_

**Author's Note:**

> hope you all enjoyed, have a wonderful christmas and new year and may both of them bring you all you dreamed of,
> 
> big love
> 
> jazz x


End file.
